[3] Other methods include wearing a rubber band on the wrist and snapping it as punishment when the negative thought occurs.
Participants were low-income, single mothers with children aged from 2 to 6 years, all screened and found to be at risk of depression.
At the end of the experiment, participants had shown a decrease in negative thinking, even 6 months after the intervention, thus improving their mental health.
The intervention included thought stopping and positive affirmations, as well as relaxation techniques in order to reduce their negative thinking.
Those in distracting conversations showed reduced fear and performed better on a Behavioural Avoidance Test than participants in the other condition.
Clients used an alternative method of thought stopping which aimed to induce anger or other feelings apart from anxiety.
Researchers found that it is important to address misconceptions of counterconditioning and ensure verbal reinforcement of progress throughout the procedure.
Meanwhile, studies on thought stopping have proven it to be effective against problematic cognition, showing a difference in both phenomena.
[10] This counterproductive consequence of thought suppression has made it a questionable technique that is less commonly found in therapy today.